Cazer’s AEW Dark Review 11.16.21

Hello folks! It’s Tuesday Night and we all know what that means! It’s time for some AEW Dark. Last week Blake let everyone know that he would be stepping away from his regular duties reviewing AEW Dark due to some scheduling issues. He also introduced your boy but for those who are unfamiliar, I am Andrew Cazer I write the weekly Impact Wrestling live recap and review and have done some guest spots for AEW Dynamite as well. This will be a regular deal like Impact and I hope to do a good job filling the shoes of Blake, no RUN-IN JONES needed Blake….at least not this week.

I haven’t been following Dark weekly in some time, but have a history with the show. I write a pretty fun occasional series for another website titled “Shining a Light on AEW Dark” and have found out so much about many of the awesome talent featured on AEW Dark. So when I was asked about this position it was a no brainer as I love discovering the unsigned gems on AEW Dark and getting to know a bit more about them.

But that’s enough about me let’s get to the action from this weeks AEW Dark.

Powerhouse Hobbs (18-4) vs. Jaysin Strife

Hobbs immediately runs through strife taking control of this match. Hobbs tosses Strife into the corner and smashes him with a number of elbow strikes. Strife goes for a middle rope crossbody but Hobbs catches him and slams him right on the top rope. Hobbs follows with hammer strikes on Strife on the top rope and nails a running knee strike to send Strife off the top. Hobbs hits a spine buster and goes for a cover he looks to have it won but he pulls up Strife to continue the beating. Hobbs locks in a torture rack to end the match via submission.
Rating: **
Review: Nothing crazy, simple squash for Hobbs over a serviceable opponent in Strife.

Andrade El Idolo (5-2) vs. Jah C (0-1)

Jah C is a local talent and the match kicks off with a decent chant for him. Jah shoves Andrade but Andrade drops him almost immediately. Andrade hammers Jah with some stiff punches before taunting him. Andrade tosses Jah into the corner and nails him with some nice chops. Andrade sends Jah into the corner and but he rolls himself onto the apron over the top ropes. Jah charges Andrade and is almost immediately dropped for his efforts. Andrade sends Jah into the corner and lights him up with some kicks before locking in an inverted triangle with the assist from the top ropes. Andrade lets go but continues to attack the shoulder in the corner before hitting a nice elbow to the face. Jah does a neat little reversal and gets some offense in before Andrade finishes him with an armbar submission out of nowhere.
Rating: **1/4
Review: This one had a bit more to it and it was nice to see Andrade work the arm to set up the finish but again nothing too spectacular. Jah’s move in the corner was sweet.

The Pinnacle Shawn Spears (13-4) & Wardlow (20-3) vs. Renny D & Arik Cannon

We see a sign Arik Cannon sign in the crowd and commentary talks up his history training Dante & Darius Martin. Spears and Renny kick off the match and Spears is annoyed by some ten chants. Arik Cannon gets a chant and Spears flips him off. Finally we get to the action and Spears drops Renny before doing a cartwheel and doing the ten taunt to Cannon. Spears applies the side headlock and is sent into the ropes but Spears sees the backdrop coming and kicks him in the face. Renny hits a nice drop kick and Spears is pissed he got the advantage so Spears goes to grab a chair. Wardlow tells him to give him the chair and Spears reluctantly complies. Renny tries to take advantage but gets dropped on the apron. Spears tags in Wardlow and he tosses Renny to the corner to tag in Cannon. Cannon gets the upper hand on Wardlow at first but nothing he does seems to have any effect. Cannon bounces off the ropes and eats a HUGE clothesline from Wardlow. Wardlow tosses Cannon into the corner to tag in Renny. Renny tags in and Wardlow hits a powerbomb on Renny. The crowd chants for another one and Wardlow lifts him up and plants him with another. He lifts Renny and drops him with a third. Cannon hits the ring and gets a powerbomb of his own. Wardlow hits a fourth powerbomb on Renny D and goes for the cover. Spears was calling for a tag and was annoyed he didn’t do anything so hits a C4 on Renny post match.
Rating: **1/2
Review: This was really good, Wardlow playing to the crowd then taking out Cannon the crowd favorite just moments later was awesome. Spears with Wardlow could be really great.

Ruby Soho (7-1) vs. Hyan

We get some fun back and forth action to kick this one off. Ruby off the middle rope and hits an arm drag on Hyan. Ruby smashes Hyan with elbow strikes, Hyan triies to pull Rubys hair and fight back but Ruby drops her with a leg sweep. Ruby off the ropes and both go for a pinfall and Hyan smashes her. Hyan goes for a backdrop and Ruby flips out. Ruby tries to land on her feet but falls instead. Oof. Ruby with her no future kick and drops Hyan for a quick victory.
Rating: *1/2
Review: This was rough despite being short. Ruby falling just before the finish didn’t do anyone any favors.

Too Fast Too Fuego (2-0) vs. Brandon Gore & Kit Sackett

Fuego and Gore kick this one off and Fuego hits some nice reversals on Gore and tags in Fuego Dos. Dos off the top with an elbow drop onto Gore. Dos signals for a championship. Fuego Dos hits a body drop on Gore and tags in Fuego. Fuego runs and Fuego Dos lifts him up for a hurricanrana on Gore. Fuego gets Gore in the corner and tags in Dos. Gore tosses Dos into the corner and Sackett gouges the eyes of Fuego Dos. Gore with a spear and follows up with a northern lights suplex on Dos for a two count. Sackett tags in and tosses Dos into the corner but Dos fights back with a chop to the chest. Sackett and Gore take control of this one beating up on Dos. Gore and Dos drop each other with a double clothesline. Fuego Dos rolls to the opponents side of the ring then rolls and tags Fuego in. Fuego with the hot tag and hits a side kick and double stomp on the back of the head of Gore. Fuego with a cover but Sackett breaks it up for two. Fuego tosses Sackett to the outside and Fuego Dos hits a tope suicida on Sackett. Fuego to the top and hits a tornado DDT on Gore for the victory. Post match Fuego Dos lifts Fuego on his shoulder to celebrate.
Rating:**1/2
Review: This was another good tag match and Cody gave a lot to the unsigned talent when he really didn’t have to. I like the Fuego Dos story but unfortunately it seems the hate for Cody could make this a difficult angle.

Alan Angels (14-22) & Colt Cabana (25-9) vs. The Acclaimed (18-4)

Max raps about Jesse Ventura, Prince, and asks how they’re called the Dark Order when they’re all white. Bowens and Angels kick this one off. Bowens shoves Alan and says everyone loves the acclaimed. Angles does a shove of his own and taunts Bowens right back. Bowens takes control and sends Angels into the corner and hits him with some stiff chops. Angels fights out and hits some chops of his own on Bowens. Bowens tosses Angels into the ropes but Angels rolls through and hits Bowens with a dropkick. Angels tags Cabana in and they drop Bowens with a double back elbow and do the Dark Order taunt not once but twice. Bowens fights back and tags in Max Caster. Caster and Cabana exchange wristlocks. We get some back and forth off the ropes before Cabana locks in the wristlock yet again to a nice pop. Caster walks right into aback elbow from Cabana and Angels tags in. Angels with a crossbody and cover on Caster but Caster kicks out. Caster fights back and drops Angels with an eye rake. Bowens with the blind tag and we get a neck breaker backstabber combo from The Acclaimed. Bowens goes for a cover but Angels kicks out. Bowens teases Angels with a tag before making a tag of his own. Angels with a forearm but eats a knee from Caster. Caster tags Bowens in and we get a double suplex. Bowens with a cover but Angels kicks out again. Caster with a cravat but Angels fights free. Bowens drops Cabana off the apron and drops Angels with an elbow to the face. Bowens runs at Angels but Caster tags in. Angels goes to make a tag but Bowens pulls Cabana off the apron. Caster pulls Angels back to the other side of the ring and tags Bowens back in. Angels goes for a tag yet again but the Acclaimed to continue to separate him from his partner. Angels with a roll up for two and finally makes a tag to Cabana. Cabana with the strike combo to the Acclaimed but they hit him with a double kick to the midsection before sending him into the ropes. Cabana reverses with a moonsault taking out both men. Cabana continues to take out both of the Acclaimed and drops both of them with Elbow strikes to the head. Cabana with the cover but only gets a two count. Bowens pulls Cabana to the outside and into the barricade. Bowens looks to dive on Cabana on the outside but meets Angels in the middle and Angels drops Bowens. Cabana with a roll up on Caster and Caster kicks out. Cabana leans outside the ring and eats the boombox to the face from Bowens. Caster rolls up Cabana for the three count victory.
Rating:**3/4
Review: This was my favorite match of the night so far. Both teams did great and Angels has really stood out to me lately on the vlogs so it’s nice to see him shine in this capacity. Right team won but The Dark Order guys looked strong. 

Emi Sakura,(8-2) The Bunny (10-7) & Nyla Rose (23-5) vs. Riho (9-2) Statlander (18-2) & Ryo Mizunami (6-2)

This one kicks off with a brawl before Nylas team takes out all of their opponents before the match even begins. Nyla and Emi stand tall over Ryo before sending her into the corner. Ryo fights out and now the team of Riho, Stat and Ryo take control. We finally get the match under way and Ryo starts off by dropping the Bunny with a shoulder tackle. Ryo sends The Bunny into the corner and hits her with some chops in the corner. Ryo and The Bunny with tags. Emi with a lateral place pinfall attempt to Riho but Riho kicks out. Riho with a great hurricanrana to Nyla. Riho with a drop toe hold followed by a tiger feignt kick to Emi in the corner. Emi drops Riho with a nasty hair whip. The Bunny tags in and sends Riho into the corner and tags in Nyla. Nyla with a spinebuster cover on Riho for two. Nyla tags in Emi and holds Riho up for a chop from Emi. Emi does her we will rock you taunt before hitting a diving cross body in the corner. Lulu tries to taunt with Emi and Mei but gets shoved by Emi almost immediately and Taz lost it. Emi goes for the queens gambit but Riho reverses and hits a double stomp on Emi. Riho and Emi tag in Stat and the Bunny. Statlander with total control dropping the Bunny with a powerslam. Statlander tags in Riho Mizunami and we get some tag team action but Nyla interrupts it dropping Statlander with a pounce. Nyla tags in and drops Ryo with a neck breaker followed by a cover but Ryo kicks out. Emi tags in and we get some big splash tag team action on Ryo. Emi with a cover but Riho and Statlander break the pin up. We get a flurry of moves from everyone in the match. Statlander tags in and uses Riho’s boots to kick Emi in the head. Statlander sets Riho down and Emi gets the upper hand. She pulls Statlander to the corner and pulls Nyla rose off the top rope for a senton. Emi covers but Statlander kicks out at two. Statlander gets back on the offensive and hits the big bang theory on Emi for the three count.
Rating:**
Review: There was a lot going on in this match and it was hard to keep track of what was what. However this was my introduction to Emi and her new group. I lost it just like Taz when she shoved Lulu I hope to see more of them in the future. 

Brock Anderson & Lee Johnson (4-1) & The Varsity Blondes (19-5) vs. The Wingmen JD Drake, Ryan Nemeth (1-3) & The Factory (Aaron Solo & Nick Comoroto) (2-3)

Pillman and Nemeth kick this off a little slow before Pillman hits some creative offense. JD Drake tags in and calls for Brock Anderson specifically. Drake and Brock exchange chops. Brock with a pair of armdrags followed up by an armbar on Drake. Brock tags in Lee who continues to work over the arm of Drake. Drake looks for a tag but Lee wont let it happen at first. Finally Drake breaks free and tags in Nemeth. Lee tags in Pillman who controls Nemeth before tagging in Griff. Griff and Pillman with a double suplex followed by a pinfall attempt from Griff. Nemeth gets Griff into the corner and tags in Aaron Solo. Griff tries to fight out of the corner but the numbers get to him. Drake tags in and beats down Griff in the corner. Drake launches Griff into the corner dropping him in the center of the ring. Drake tags in Nemeth who takes control momentarily before Griff hits an armdrag and tags Brock. Brock with an inverted wristlock on Nemeth as Nemeth calls for a tag. Nemeth sends Brock into the ropes and JD Drake hits him with a knee to the back. Brock drops Drake but Brock tosses him to the outside. Drake launches Brock into the bottom ropes and hits him with a nice forearm. Drake tags Brock into the ring as we get a tag from Comoroto. Comoroto controls Brock and hits him with a massive elbow drop. Brock tries to fight back and eats a suplex from Nick. Solo tags in and hits Brock with a clothesline in the corner. Solo distracts the ref and we get some outside interference from QT Marshall. Solo drops Brock with a stiff elbow shot to the face. Solo tags in Comoroto and we get tag team action on Brock in the corner. Comoroto tags in Drake who continues to isolate Brock form his corner. Drake drops both members of the varsity blondes off the apron. Drake goes for a cannonball on Brock in the corner but Brock moves. Brock tags in Lee who takes out Comoroto and Solo who tags in. Lee with a running elbow to Solo in the corner. We get some fancy back and forth between Lee and Solo and Lee hits Solo with a blue thunder bomb. Solo sends Lee right into Ryan Nemeth who hits a great DDT on Lee. this one breaks down and Pillman goes for a crossbody but Comoroto reverses and drops Pillman on his head. Griff over the top and onto JD Drake drops Lee Johnson with a high boot and goes for a cover but Lee kicks out at two. Lee Johnson dives onto the group outside of the ring and they hardly catch him./ QT yells at Julia Hart and Arn hits him with the glock taunt before he gets slapped from Julia. Drake in the ring and gets hit with a spinebuster from Brock. Lee to the top and hits a frog splash onto Drake. Lee with the three count for the win.
Rating:**
Review: There was a lot that went on in this match and quite a few hiccups particularly dropping Lee Johnson on his head on that outside dive. That said this match certainly had some bright spots for nearly everyone involved but i’d say Lee & JD Drake looked awesome. 

Peter Avalon (8-40-2) vs. John Silver (19-6)

Silver and Avalon lock up with neither man getting a clear advantage to start this match. We get a taunt off between both men. Silver off the ropes and drops Avalon with a huge clothesline. Silver launches Avalon with two tosses and goes for a third before Avalon fights out. Silver drops Avalon with a shoulder tackle. Avalon sends Silver into the ropes and drops him with a dropkick. Avalon chops Silver in the corner. Silver with some chops of his own before being tossed to the outside by Avalon. Both men exchange chops on the outside with both men nearly getting counted out before Avalon breaks the count. Both men back into the ring and Avalon with a sunset flip for a two count. Avalon with a backdrop to Silver and another cover for two. Avalon locks in a submission but Silver fights out hitting Avalon with an uppercut followed by a leg lariat. Avalon with another cover for two when Silver gets the rope break for two. Avalon goes for a moonsault onto Silver but he moves out of the way. Silver with the kicks across the chest to Avalon and follows with a backbody drop to silver. Avalon off the ropes and Silver hits a liger bomb on Avalon for a two count. Avalon with a sprinboard crossbody for a two count on Silver. Both men to their feet and we get a chop exchange between them both Silver takes control with a pump kick. Silver hits his series of kicks on Avalon. Avalon fights back but gets dropped into the ropes and eats a pump kick followed by a release German suplex onto Avalon. Sliver hits the spin doctor on Avalon for the three count victory.
Rating: **
Review: This felt so long to me. These guys can go but they spent a lot of time trying to be funny and quite honestly to me just going back and forth doing the same things over and over. Lots of chops in this one but down the stretch it did get going. I also believe Silver should be able to handle someone like Avalon quickly, and maybe the story is he didn’t take him serious but still. 

Sonny Kiss (11-13) vs. Adam Grace

Kiss with the upper hand initially sends Grace into the corner and drops him with a kick to the midsection in the corner. Kiss goes for a moonsault on Grace but Grace reverses and locks Sonny in a reverses chinlock. Grace goes for a cover but Sonny kicks out. Grace locks a chinlock in yet again but Sonny fights out. Sonny with a belly to belly suplex on Grace then hits him with a corkscrew kick. Sonny with a stunner with a split which increases impact according to Taz. Kiss goes for the cover and picks up the victory.
Rating: **
Review: This was short and i’m not completely sure where I stand with Sonny. I enjoyed the program with Joey but early on their in ring work was lacking in places and a match like this makes a bit hard to gauge the growth. 

Ten (32-6) vs. Mikey Wild

Ten takes control from the start hitting a couple of clotheslines in the corner before Mikey moves out of the way from one but still eats a chop. Mikey goes for chops of his own and Ten eats them all. Ten sends Mikey into the corner and Wild takes a pump kick to the side of the head. Ten with a spinebuster on Mikey and locks in a full nelson for the victory
Rating: **
Review: Short sweet and to the point there’s nothing ‘must see’ in this match but Ten is really great and i’m curious what the plan is for him. You have to imagine a guy with a record of 32-6 as this year closes is going to look to have an impressive 2022.

Scorpio Sky (22-3) vs. Craven Knyte

Lock up to kick things off and Craven shows some intensity but Scorpio quickly takes the upper hand and disrespects Craven in the process. Craven fights back momentarily but is quickly taken off his feet yet again by Sky. Sky looks for a backdrop but Knyte reverses out. Craven goes for a strike on Sky but Sky moves and gets him on the shoulders and hits him with his finisher for the victory.
Rating: **
Review: Another solid singles squash match for Dark. Craven showed some promise in his short bursts of offense. Sky is always gonna be pretty great. Page on commentary was fun. I am surprised this was the main event though as it really was nothing to necessarily write home about.